


A hard day's night

by nihilisten



Series: sounds of the universe [3]
Category: Doctor Who, The Beatles (Band)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-22
Updated: 2019-12-23
Packaged: 2021-02-26 15:22:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,166
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21890305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nihilisten/pseuds/nihilisten
Summary: But when I get home to you I'll find the things that you do will make me feel alright.You know I feel alright...
Relationships: The Doctor (Doctor Who) & Companion(s), The Doctor (Doctor Who)/John Lennon
Series: sounds of the universe [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1553110
Kudos: 9





	1. side A

When the Doctor had suddenly declared he needed to go somewhere, Kasey originally dismissed it as one of his usual antics.

“Well, go ahead. Want me to stay in the TARDIS?”

“No, no, it’s better if you come with me. You see, I need to meet someone I haven’t seen in a long time. And I feel like you should meet him too.”

The Doctor then proceeded to steer his beloved time machine, leaving Kasey to ponder about who was that mysterious someone he wanted her to meet. This was new, it had never happened before. But since Kasey trusted the Doctor completely, she figured it wouldn’t be that big of a deal.

Oh, if only she had known how wrong she was.

Once the TARDIS landed and they stepped out, she found herself in an oddly familiar, but also oddly unknown world. Big Ben hovering over the streets, outdated fashion and a complete lack of people browsing the Internet on their phones – she figured it had to be London, somewhere in the 20th century.

But it wasn’t before the Doctor grabbed her hand and they started running, running until they reached a hotel, and didn’t stop even after entering the lobby, that she got really curious about all this. The receptionist stopped talking over a ancient phone only to shoot them a glance, and a few guards in uniforms got alarmed.

“John Lennon’s personal staff!” Waving his psychic paper about, the Doctor ran past a guard, who seemed too startled to even react. Kasey followed the Time Lord without protest, though deep down this felt too weird to believe. Perhaps she misheard—perhaps it was wishful thinking, nothing else.

Except it wasn’t.

They reached a hotel room at the end of the corridor, a small template with _John Lennon – do not disturb_ written on it attached to the door. Laughter could be heard from the inside.

“Is this for real?” Kasey had to blink. Somehow the fact that she was about to meet the Beatles was more surprising than anything she had witnessed so far.

The Doctor shushed and knocked quietly. Laughter died down; after a second the door opened to reveal a face Kasey didn’t quite recognise at the first glance.

It was a delightfully young face; a mop-top of dark locks almost invaded gleaming eyes, and the corners of his lips were slightly raised like he never stopped joking. The gentleman turned back to excuse himself to the people in the room, then stepped outside to face the Doctor and a very starstruck Kasey. So unbelievably _young_ , she thought, probably only about a few years older than she was. Which meant they were in mid-1960s at most.

“John!” The Doctor exclaimed, extending his hands. When the gentleman’s face remained politely curious, the Doctor quickly explained. “Oh right, you haven’t met this regeneration yet, have you? Remember cosmic guitars?”

“Doctor?” John Lennon finally asked, and the Doctor laughed loudly. “Doctor, it’s you!”

The scene that unfolded next before Kasey’s eyes was wholesome and surreal at the same time: John fell into the Doctor’s arms, embracing him like a long lost friend, and the Doctor patted his back with pure tenderness. They remained in each other’s arms for quite a few seconds, after which, much to Kasey’ amazement, the door opened wide to reveal the remaining members of the Fab Four – Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr and George Harrison.

“John, what is—”

Upon seeing their bandmate hugging a stranger, their faces grew about as surprised as Kasey’s, at least until they noticed _her_ – an ordinary girl standing next to the hugging duo, looking as out of place as possible, but still, a girl. Paul instantly forgot John and the Doctor, putting up the prettiest smile to his face as he extended his palm to Kasey.

“Hello there,” he greeted her; in the background she briefly noticed Ringo rolling his eyes. “My name is Paul.”

“I-I know,” she stuttered, taking his palm nonetheless. “I mean, who doesn’t. You’re the Beatles, after all.”

The Doctor and John finally pulled back; Paul immediately turned to John, almost accusingly pointing a finger between Kasey and the Doctor.

“Oi, John, what is this all about? You’ve got a cute bird right here but you’re hugging a lad?”

“Shut up.” John scratched his nose. “He’s my old friend. Guys, meet the Doctor. I don’t need to introduce them though, do I?” He pointed his chin at Paul, Ringo and George.

“Oh no, everyone in the universe knows who you are.” Then the Doctor at last seemed to remember his companion’s existence. “This is Kasey. She travels with me.”

“Hi,” muttered Kasey.

They exchanged handshakes with the guys, who still seemed wary to say the least. Before things got awkward, though, John decided to take the initiative.

“Please come on in, Doctor.” He gestured at the door to his room. “We were just having a little meeting, an informal one, so it will be our pleasure if you join us. And of course, your companion as well.”

“Oh, really? How kind of you, of course we’ll join in!” The Doctor waved at the girl to follow him and everyone proceeded inside.

Once they entered, Kasey found herself in a small backstage room that somehow was able to fit in four famous lads and two visitors from another time. Paul sat on a chair, resting his legs on the table; George took another chair; Ringo occupied the floor, while John, Doctor and Kasey sat on the sofa. Unsurprisingly, beer bottles lay here and there. Informal meeting, huh?

“So is she from another time?” John grinned, grabbing a beer. He offered some to Kasey and the Doctor, but both declined.

“She is, actually.” The Doctor sat comfortably, almost too comfortably to Kasey’s liking, since he was squeezed between her and John, though the Beatle didn’t seem to mind the closeness at all.

“Oh, that’s fascinating. When exactly?”

“About fifty years in the future from now, I guess?” Kasey replied, awkwardly glancing at the other three, who looked like they had absolutely zero idea about anything that was being discussed. But who could blame them? She wondered if it was really okay to have a casual chit-chat about wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff next to completely unaware people. Even if they were _the Beatles_.

“Fifty years? Damn.” John took a sip from his bottle. “I know, I know,” he added before the Doctor could say anything. “No spoilers for our future. But I’m still impressed.”

“Can I ask what on Earth are you high on?” Paul interrupted, adjusting his posture. “Fifty years in the future? John, I’ve had a few beers, but apparently, not enough.” He gulped down some beer as if in an attempt to fix it up. “Who are these lunatics?”

“You heard him. They’re his _friends_.” Ringo spat out, his tone so cold that Kasey shivered. “Birds of a feather flock together, eh?”

“It’s not a big deal, really,” replied John calmly, ignoring Ringo’s passive-aggressive remark. “The Doctor is a time traveller. It’s no wonder he met a person from fifty years in the future.”

“Yeah, right. Fifty years in the future people probably live on the Moon and have television sets instead of hearts.” George mumbled and nodded at Ringo to raise a toast.

While they sipped their beer, the atmosphere got more and more tense, but the Doctor didn’t seem to mind, and John didn’t seem to try to fix it. Kasey, however, found it necessary to make everyone comfortable again. She reached to her pocket.

“We don’t live on the Moon nor do we have TVs in our hearts,” she started, “but there are things that you probably wouldn’t dream of. Mind if I prove it to you?”

“I mean, technically, the ‘things’ you’re talking about couldn’t prove time travelling…” stated Ringo indifferently.

“Look.” She showed him her smartphone. There was no reception, of course, but there was a music player. John and Paul’s voices resounded in the air; Kasey knew playing one of their songs would do the thing. “Is there such a device in your time? Not a vinyl player, not a radio, but a small little screen that can play music? _Your_ music?”

Ringo fell silent.

Taking another sip of his beer, John chuckled. “I’m glad your friend is as witty as you, Doctor. Now everyone, please, I would want the greatest people in my life to get along.”

Seemingly befriended, the three Beatles toasted to Kasey and the Doctor. Paul, once again, leaned towards Kasey, but she was hoping the guys would talk more to each other than to her, so that she could savour their interactions while they lasted.

“Wait, wait, Doctor.” Suddenly she remembered something. “I’m sure everyone wants to know.”

“What is it, my dear?” Replied the Doctor.

“How exactly do you know John Lennon? You never mentioned,” asked Kasey, still a bit starstruck. John smiled at her, an innocent smile, like he was trying to say ‘An obvious thing, really. Elementary, dear Watson’. Her heart skipped a beat or two.

“Long story,” John spoke up, his bandmates listening as eagerly as Kasey did. “We met – when was it? – around year fifty-seven. There’s no way I could explain what actually happened, but according to the Doctor, he prevented me from not meeting Paul in July,” he finished, looking at his friend. “Remember? That day, there was a commotion, a few people got beaten up. The Doctor was the one who told me to change ways. If I hadn’t, apparently we wouldn’t have met. The Beatles wouldn’t have existed.”

Silence fell; Kasey realised what ‘mixed emotions’ truly meant from looking at Paul, Ringo and George. Paul seemed like he wanted to dismiss John’s words on the spot, but something prevented him. Perhaps he did remember the commotion John talked about. Either way, the story surprised them all.

“But you mentioned cosmic guitars or something like that…”

The Doctor and John exchanged glances that instantly made Kasey regret even asking. God, not only did the Doctor dabble with the greatest band in history, but his connections to them were far more complicated than she could ever imagine. Her head started hurting at the mere thought of the extent of the Doctor’s experiences.

“Let’s not talk about it.” The Doctor laughed.

“Yeah, let’s not,” agreed John and they both continued laughing, holding each other’s hands like they were both tipsy. Kasey sighed.

Meanwhile the other three decided to collectively ignore John and the Doctor, who seemed perfectly okay with their own company as they talked about what they had missed on.

“So, Kasey,” George spoke up. “You and the Doctor are travellers?”

“Oh, yeah.” Her brain seemed to lag each time a Beatle even looked at her, let alone talked to her. In her defence, they were the Beatles, for God’s sake. “It probably sounds crazy, but I have seen so many worlds with him. And yet, sitting here talking to you guys is the craziest thing so far,” she smiled awkwardly.

“I mean, this is crazy. A weirdo appears out of nowhere to chip-chat with John.” Ringo mumbled before gulping down more beer. “At least you are somewhat normal, not counting the whole future part.”

“Ah, well, the future isn’t that different if you ask me. The world has evolved, although people are essentially the same, I believe. But hey,” she remembered, “I’m not allowed to give out any details.”

“Bummer.” Paul didn’t seem disappointed. “But even in your time, you like our songs?”

Kasey hesitated. Telling them this wouldn’t be giving out any details, would it? It’s not like they weren’t famous in their own era. Beatlemania was real, people really got crazy about them. However, no one expected this seemingly trivial boyband to make such a huge impact on, well, everything – to change the music industry, the culture, the society. Those twenty-something boys could never predict that they would be remembered, forever.

And it should stay that way… but perhaps, some reassurance wouldn’t hurt.

“I do. And I’m not the only one.”

“Really?”

“Yes,” she tried hard to prevent her voice from rising drastically. “Music is powerful. It transcends time to live on, forever.”

The room fell silent for a few seconds; Kasey could see the Doctor shoot her a glance before picking up where he left while talking to John. Oof. Did she overdo this? Hopefully not, the Doctor would have already told her to keep quiet if she did. Kasey sighed and looked back at the three Beatles, whose faces seemed a bit awestruck.

“What?” She asked without thinking.

“It’s so crazy.” Ringo whispered. “It’s so unfair John always gets to meet the most interesting people.”

“Huh? Me? What are you talking about, sir. He only met me today. It’s the Doctor who’s interesting.”

“Sir?” Paul nudged Ringo’s shoulder, almost spilling beer to the floor. “Did you hear that, Ringo? She thinks you’re old.”

“No, that’s not what I—”

“She was just being polite.” George interrupted, shutting Paul up. “But it’s true, John always keeps all the fun to himself.”

Kasey let her gaze briefly land on the Doctor and John, who still couldn’t get enough of reminiscing, and instantly a wave of warmth spread in her chest like a wildfire. Her eyes watered as all the future events she read about on Wikipedia flickered in her mind. But it was no use getting emotional; all she could do was to seize this moment that she never expected to happen, to savour it and bring the best out of it.

“It really is true,” she smiled. “After all, he teamed up with you guys.”


	2. side B

Day off wasn’t a common occurrence to the Beatles, especially at the height of Beatlemania. But when it happened, the boys weren’t bored, even if they were. It was perfectly fine as long as they had each other’s company.

At least in theory…

“Something wrong, Ringo?” Asked Paul, seeing the drummer deep in thought as he smoked a cigarette.

“No, I’m fine. Just thinking.”

“About what?”

“Oh well, the usual. You know, the latest record, the next record, the Doctor…”

Paul’s lips formed a grin. “I’ve been wondering, too! What’s he up to these days? Last time he took us to see Elvis’s performance, transmitted live on Venusian TV, it was more mind blowing than drugs.”

It had been a lazy day. John was currently sleeping on the sofa, George was messing about with his guitar, Ringo was smoking and Paul kept himself busy bothering his friends. A day like any other day, you could say.

“But isn’t that amazing? They listen to Elvis on _Venus_ ,” George muttered in awe. “I just can’t wrap my head around it.”

“Tell me about it,” said Ringo with an absent voice. “I wonder if they watch our performances as well…”

“You can try asking the Doctor, if he tells you.” Paul scrunched his nose.

Suddenly, a familiar buzzing sound echoed somewhere in the streets. Everyone – except John, who was still fast asleep – froze. They knew that sound.

Paul and Ringo exchanged glances, then rushed to the door, stumbling outside like their life depended on it. George, a bit startled, tried to follow them, but when his hand reached for the doorknob, he remembered about John. Not having much of a choice, he turned back and leaned over the sleeping guy, shaking him awake.

“John! John, wake up!”

“…Mph, what?” John rubbed his eyes, too sleepy to open them. However, as soon as the sound reached his ears regardless, he awoke immediately. “Oh, damn!” He grabbed George’s hand, then they both ran outside, following their two bandmates.

The boys ran down the street, around the corner where the sound came from. As they expected, a tall blue box stood there like a monument. In their time, boxes like these were common, but they knew this wasn’t a regular police box.

The door opened to reveal someone they knew very well.

“Kasey, I think we’re here. Now let’s—” The man’s jaw dropped at the sight of four lads. “Blimey! They found us first!”

“Doctor!”

Collective scream pierced the air, much like mass hysteria appearing wherever the Beatles went. Paul was the first one to run up and tackle the Time Lord.

“Doctor, where have you been!”

“Paulie, my dear,” laughed the Doctor, embracing him. “John!” He then hugged the other guys. “George, Ritchie. How great to see you.”

“Weren’t expecting us here, were you?” Ringo straightened his back in a proud manner.

“Well, I was about to visit you, but you lot are too smart for me. How are you? Wait, don’t say anything, I know that already.”

The Fab Four laughed; a carefree laugh that didn’t care about the unknown future. All that mattered was a reunion with the person who impacted them as much as they impacted him.

As they exchanged hearty greetings, Kasey emerged from the TARDIS. Upon seeing the Beatles a few steps away, she almost tripped. “Oh my goodness.”

“Kasey!”

Another scream, and the girl found herself being caught in a bear hug four times in a row. As if seeing the Beatles up close wasn’t enough to make her dizzy, no matter how many times it happened!

“Kasey, you haven’t changed at all!” George examined her face, holding her by the shoulders. “It’s been over a year, hasn’t it?”

“Yeah, it has,” nodded John. “It’s 1964 now.”

“A year for you, maybe, a but a week for me,” Kasey tried chuckling, which came out much like a cough.

“Oh, I do feel like that sometimes. Especially between the recording sessions.” Ringo grinned.

As Kasey looked over their smiling faces, her heart filled with peace. For some reason, the reunion felt natural, almost as if they had spent hundreds of hours together (which they hadn’t, though the ones they had shared were indeed meaningful). Still, Kasey didn’t quite acknowledge the fact that the Beatles greeted her like a long lost family – because if she did, she might have dropped dead in a heartbeat.

“Now!” The Doctor clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention. “Since we don’t have to break into your apartments anymore, I’ll let you decide on our plans, hm?” He smiled at the four guys. “Either me and Kasey join you in… whatever it is you were doing, or you join us in the TARDIS. What do you say?”

He didn’t need to repeat; the Beatles almost crushed Kasey on their way to the door, excited like little children.

Before following them, Kasey looked back at the Doctor. “You know, this is still the craziest thing I’ve experienced with you.”

“So?” The Doctor shrugged with an innocent expression. “I know you like it.”

Kasey was just about to reply ‘I do’, when John Lennon’s voice could be heard from the TARIDS.

“Are you coming or not, because Ringo is attempting to steer this thing!”

The Doctor’s face grew pale with terror. He rushed inside; Kasey followed, laughing.


End file.
